Natick Redhawks

Hello Natick High School Caregivers,

This week at Natick High, we continued the course selection process for students by hosting the remaining guidance assembly with our 10th graders. Students at Natick High have a deep array of course offerings, and that choice can feel overwhelming to some students. More information about this process is below. As your student walks through the course selection process, we invite you to speak to their guidance counselor if you have questions.

Below, you will also see more information on the survey for the Natick Public Schools Strategic Plan. I encourage you to take a moment to fill it out to share what matters most to you as we plan for the future of Natick Public Schools.

You will also be receiving an email from me on Monday with another survey: an invitation to share feedback as a part of our Guidance Department Review Process. Our Guidance Department is working with the Massachusetts School Counselors Association to gather information on how we can best support your teens as they navigate high school in this ever-changing world. We hope you will take the time to give us your thoughts!

I also want to invite you to look at the Redhawk Pride section. It has been an amazing season for our winter athletes so far, with a number of successes. Our student musicians and Speech and Debate Team are also highlighted for some major accomplishments.

We are also heading into the last week before February break, so if your family will be celebrating the Lunar New Year over the break, I wish you a Happy Lunar New Year full of happiness and prosperity.

And lastly, go Pats!

Josepha Blocker

Principal, Natick High School

2/6 - Semester 1 grades finalized on Powerschool

2/7 - Band Jam '26 at 6:30 pm

2/13 - Course Registration Process for 26-27 closes at 3 pm

2/13 - Deadline for the Strategic Plan survey

2/16 - 2/20 - February Break, No School

2/16 - Presidents’ Day

2/17 - Lunar New Year

2/27 - 2/28 - Student-Directed Play, Pippin

Since Lunar New Year will occur during break, I wanted to wish those of you who celebrate an (early) Lunar New Year. We wish you a year full of happiness, health, and good luck!

Grades for term 2, midterm assessments and semester 1 are now finalized on Powerschool. Please note that even for full year courses, students receive grades and credit by semester. We encourage you to discuss your student's grades with them and to reach out to us with any questions or concerns.

These documents may help with viewing your student's grades:

• Creating a Powerschool Parent Portal account
• Instructions for viewing grades in Powerschool can be found here.

The PowerSchool course selection portal is now open and will remain open until Friday, February 13th at 3:00pm. We encourage you to look at your student's course recommendations with them and to discuss the course options with them.

Please note the following

• The course selection process must be done on a computer, as it will not work on a mobile device.
• You and your NHS student can access all directions for the online course scheduling process here.
• The system does not allow students to partially enter requests, so students should plan on entering all of their requests at one time.
• This process is NOT first-come-first-served, so students should not rush to input courses.
• All students in grades 9 through 11 must enter their courses for next year by 3 pm on Friday (2/13).

Guidance Counselors will be reviewing all students’ course selections, and will be meeting individually with students throughout February to discuss their selections.

Tomorrow, Saturday, February 7th, band students from grades 5-12 will be performing at our annual Band Jam at 6:30 pm in the NHS Gym. We are very excited to bring the band community together for this event once again!

Caregivers and students are invited to complete this survey to give input into the plan. We will be giving students the option to complete this survey in school on Wednesday during our Daily Announcements.

More information on the Natick Public Schools Strategic Planning Process is available here:

https://www.natickps.org/page/strategic-plan

Each year, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) publishes a school report card that shares information about student learning, school climate, and other key indicators. Please see this letter for a link to our school’s report card and additional information. If you have questions after reviewing the report, please contact the Main Office.

Students have been working hard to prepare for our student-directed musical, Pippin, and we are in dire need of a piano accompanist. We are seeking someone to learn the score, complete some programming, attend all tech week rehearsals, and play in three performances.

The dates are as follows:

Tech Week: Monday, February 23rd - Thursday, February, 26th, 3:30 - 6:30pm

Performance #1: Friday, February 27th, 6 pm - 10 pm (Meal provided)

Performance #2: Saturday, February 28th, 12 pm - 7 pm (Meal provided)

Two hours are also included for travel and preparation. The set rate is $40.48 per hour.

Interested applicants should apply to the posting on the Natick Public School website and SchoolSpring at https://natickps.schoolspring.com/. The position is listed as

Musical PIT (Piano) Musicians for Student Directed Musical (3039).

Last year, Natick students received close to $300,000 in local scholarships from our generous community, and they are poised to do the same this year! Some scholarship opportunities support going to college and others support going into a trade, certificate program or vocational program. Therefore, all students should consider applying.

Here are some details.

• A link for this year's scholarship process was emailed on to all seniors this past Wednesday (2/4) and the portal to apply is now open through Monday, March 9th.

• A guide will be sent to students to walk them through the application process using the AwardSpring platform.

• Once students have completed and submitted their application, they will be matched with all scholarship opportunities open to them.

• Many scholarships have additional required materials that will only be available after the initial application is submitted. Therefore, students should plan to submit their initial application by Monday, February 16th to allow plenty of time to submit any supplemental materials by Monday, March 9th, the deadline to submit all application materials.

• Please reach out to Donna Slattery (doslattery@natickps.org) in the Guidance Office with questions.

The Yearbook staff would like to have a photo of every senior. All students missing a photo will receive a Google Form from the Yearbook asking where we can get a photo from them.

In late January/Early February, ALL seniors and their caregivers will receive a PDF proof of the page they are featured on, where you will be able to check that:

• Their photos are correct
• Their names are spelled correctly
• Their senior quotes are correct

Final page submission for seniors will be the week before February break, so any changes can be made up until that point.

If you have questions, please contact Yearbook Advisor Jonathan Fleming (jfleming@natickps.org) or a member of the Yearbook staff.

• The Wrestling Team has gone 18–4 overall and a 7–0 mark in the Bay State Conference Winning their 30th Bay State League title!
  
• The Boys Swim team Won the Bay State Conference Meet for the first time since 2020!
  
• The Girls Indoor Track Team finished second in the Bay State Meet. Plus,
  
• Emi Edozien won the Bay State Conference Meet in the 55m Hurdles
• Chloe Elder and John Bianchi won the 600m and the 1000m respectively, both setting school records in the process.
• In Boys Indoor Track, finished 5th in the Bay State Meet.
  
• The Gymnastics Team is 5-3 with some strong performances against some of the top teams in the conference. They head into the Bay State meet this Saturday with a chance to qualify for Sectionals.
  
• As of last week, Girls Basketball was 12-4 and has captured back to back league titles!
  
• Boys Basketball is 8-7 while battling through some injuries. The boys have a chance to win at least a tie of the division title with a win over Newton North or Wellesley!
• Nordic Ski had a strong showing with several top 10 finishers in their last race before their post season meets begin.

On Saturday, January 24th, many of our NHS students auditioned for the MMEA All State Festival. We are very proud of all students who auditioned and want to congratulate the accepted students below, who will be performing on March 21st. Please congratulate the following students (pictured below).

• Rachel Atkin, Bassoon, Orchestra

• Austen Harman, Percussion, Percussion Ensemble

• Justine Lai, Clarinet, Band

• Maggie Lee, Baritone Sax, Jazz Ensemble

• Ben Sawatdiphong, French Horn, Orchestra

• Ellie Stevens, Bassoon, Orchestra

On Saturday, January 31st, NHS students auditioned for the Eastern District Junior Festival. Congratulations to all students for their hard work! The following students were accepted to perform on March 7th:

• Alex Dancer, Principal Oboe - Orchestra

• Tanmayi Katta, Flute - Concert Band
• Ryder Pabian, Oboe - Concert Band
• Olivia Kuo, Clarinet - Concert Band
• Sam Lawlor, Clarinet - Concert Band
• William Rendall, Clarinet - Concert Band
• Adelyn Woo, Clarinet - Concert Band

As a member of the National Speech & Debate Association, our students have the chance to earn recognition through points and degrees in the NSDA Honor Society. Each new degree represents hours of learning, practice, and improvement by your students thanks to dedicated coaching. Congratulations to these Speech and Debate Team members on their new degrees!

Adwait Acharya - Excellence

Neil Badgujar - Excellence

Julia Cohen - Merit

Kavi Gopal - Merit

Ellie Elektra Ioannidis - Merit

John Landgren - Honor

Katherine Ou - Merit

Truman Scoppetto - Honor

Aanya Sikka - Excellence

Aarav Sikka - Merit

Date: Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Location: Fuller Middle School, 31 Flagg Drive, Framingham, MA 01702
Time: 4:00 PM – 6:30 PM

The Better Business Bureau Serving Eastern MA, ME, RI & VT will be hosting the Metrowest Future Leaders Summit — an inspiring, interactive event for high school students. The Future Leaders Summit connects students with local business and community leaders for growth, networking, and inspiration. Participants will gain valuable insights into local resources, business finances, and using AI to help streamline processes not steamroll creativity — all in an engaging, student-centered environment.

This is a hands-on experience where Metrowest high school innovators bring their business ideas to life and showcase them at our community expo. This event is for driven high school students (grades 9-12) with a passion for entrepreneurship and a groundbreaking business idea or product.

Applications and event details are available online.

If you have any questions about the program, please reach out to Danielle Bass, the Community Engagement Manager for the Better Business Bureau at dbass@boston.bbb.org

This event is open to the public, and some NHS students will be volunteering!

The Harvard School of Dental Medicine is hosting another "Give Kids a Smile", a free dental care event for children! The team of dental professionals and students will provide: free dental exams, cleanings and fluoride treatments, sealants and cavity screenings, oral health education and fun activities, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and floss.

Date: February 28th, 2026

Location: Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA

Parking - Patient parking is complimentary on the event day at the adjoining above-ground lot at 188 Longwood OR at the 77 Louis Pasteur Garage.

Time: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM

This event is open to children ages 1-18, regardless of insurance status. Parents and guardians are encouraged to register in advance to secure an appointment at https://www.hsdm.harvard.edu/event/give-kids-smile.

Families who wish to participate, but do not have transportation, can fill this FORM.

A school bus will be available at Kennedy Middle School on the 28th at 8:30 am and returning 1 pm.

Regular attendance to school is vital to your student's education. If your NHS student needs to be absent, please email call the absence line at 508-647-6601 before 10 am on the day of your student's absence. Please note that if we do not receive the necessary call from you, you will receive a call from us! Please see the handbook for other attendance related information regarding excused absences.

Reminder If you want to volunteer in schools, you must have a CORI check conducted and you must go into the building with identification (drivers license or passport) to do this. Click here for description of what a CORI check is and does. Without a CORI check, you cannot volunteer in the school. Here is the form to fill out for a CORI.

Thank you to our PTSO for their ongoing support to our students and faculty. Our PTSO is looking for more volunteers to assist them with their work for the school year. You can learn more about the NHS PTSO, and how to get involved by visiting their website and subscribing to their monthly newsletter at the top of their webpage. You can subscribe to their monthly newsletter at the top of their webpage!

Please reach out for more information about volunteering opportunities at natickhighptso@gmail.com.

Natick Public Schools does not discriminate in employment nor its educational programs, services, and activities based on race, creed, color, age, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, physical and intellectual differences, immigration status, homeless status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Please be aware all electronic communication to and from Natick Public Schools is public record and subject to public disclosure per Massachusetts General Law Chapter 66, Section 10.

• Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990
• Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990
• Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
• MGL, Ch.76, Section 5: Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 76, Section 5